Thin People Are Taking Ozempic to Get Thinner. I’m on It for Medical Reasons – Heather Tal Murphy (Slate) / Mar 3, 2023
I wouldn’t recommend just anyone use it.
Ozempic has become the hot new thing among celebrities, models, Instagram stars and other thin people, who are determined to get even thinner, according to an article in New York magazine published earlier this week.
It was difficult not to come away from the article feeling disgusted by the way the medication seems to have encouraged existing on one-and-half meals a day, plus some tea and a Xanax (which is how one of the women interviewed described her diet). We were curious to hear about the experience of someone diabetic whose doctor prescribed it for actual medical reasons. This essay is adapted from an interview with Ron Passmore, 55, of Richmond, Virginia, who kindly agreed to share his story. He has been on Ozempic for 11 months.
I think Ozempic gets a bad rap because some doctors are prescribing it to people who shouldn’t be on it. For me, it’s been a positive experience. I’ve been diabetic since my early thirties and have been insulin dependent for about 20 years. I started taking it because my doctor wanted to find a better way to manage my blood sugar. I went on it in April and I lost 100 pounds as of Feb. 1. My physician says I’ve lost more weight than any other patient he’s put on it. I had no expectations of losing weight. The average Ozempic patient loses 12 pounds. But I was at 387 pounds so me losing 12 pounds would be like the Titanic losing a deck chair.
This was my doctor’s idea. He said let’s give Ozempic a try and see if we can reduce the amount of insulin you have to take. My blood sugar levels were in the controlled diabetic range, but I was having to take way more insulin than the average diabetic, injecting it in the abdomen no less than four times a day. When you take insulin that causes you to gain weight. Large amounts of insulin cause additional weight gain. It’s a vicious never-ending cycle; when you have extra insulin free floating in your system that generates hunger and so you eat—or sometimes overreact—to cover the insulin. And then your sugar levels are so high that your brain triggers you to need still more insulin.
My doctor had been watching my weight go up for years. I’m six two, a big guy, so it came on slowly, maybe an average of 10 pounds a year. But before you know it, you’re morbidly obese. My doctor didn’t want me to hit 450 pounds by the time I was 60. He went over the standard stuff when he prescribed Ozempic; some patients tolerate it and some patients don’t. I might lose a few pounds.
CONTINUE > https://slate.com/technology/2023/03/ozempic-diabetes-side-effects-weight-loss.html
